Max Domi, Nick Robertson, and John Tavares stood out as the Toronto Maple Leafs took down the Buffalo Sabres in thrilling comeback win on Sunday.
Coming off the heels of a disappointing 4-2 defeat at the hands of the Detroit Red Wings last night, head coach Craig Berube made several changes to his lineup on Sunday, including the reinsertion of forward Nick Robertson, which really paid off.
Robertson has had a difficult 2024-25 campaign and he hasn’t done himself any favours after requesting a trade over the summer. Last night, however, he silenced his crtics when he ended up doubling his point totals on the season with a goal and an assist against Buffalo and displayed a bit more of an edge that we’re used to seeing from him.
Robertson entered the contest with just 2 goals and 0 assists in 23 games, but left with his 3rd goal of the season and 1st assist. He was also a plus-2, had 1 shot on goal, and delivered 4 hits in 13:26 TOI. It was the highest TOI he’s registered over his last 5 contests.
Speaking of firsts, Max Domi finally recorded his first goal of the season and his celebration said it all. It was a big goal on several different fronts as it was the first of the season for the veteran but also the first goal of the game for the Maple Leafs, who were trailing 2-0 in the first period.
It was something the media had made mention of several times since his return, with his head coach urging him to shoot the puck more,, and starting the season without a goal in 22 games is not something you want to deal with, which explains his reactionary celebration.
While their efforts were instrumental in the comeback, the win could not have happened without the hat-trick from John Tavares. The former captain notched a natural hat-trick, scoring the final 3 goals of the game, including the game-tying and the go-ahead goals in the second period.
The 16-year veteran now sits with 15 goals and 28 points in 30 contests and has seemingly turned back the clock after a disappointing 2023-24 campaign, at least from his usual standards.
The Maple Leafs will look to build off of this character win the next time out when they face the Dallas Stars on the road on Wednesday night.
